


carnival

by Tayani



Series: ShuAke Confidant Week [2]
Category: Persona 5
Genre: Akira is afraid of dogs, Canon Compliant, Day 2, First Dates, Fluff, Goro is a dog person, M/M, ShuAke Confidant Week
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-30
Updated: 2018-10-30
Packaged: 2019-08-09 18:32:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,685
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16455152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tayani/pseuds/Tayani
Summary: ShuAke Confidant Week Day 2 – teamwork / partnership / compatibilityAkira tries to conquer his fear; Goro is there to help him out.





	carnival

Akira has always been the kind of person who – given circumstance and possibility – enjoyed working on bettering himself. He preferred facing his fears to letting them stew and hinder his judgment; he was the kind of person to jump right into deep water instead of slowly walking in from the shallows.

Sometimes, this proved useful. Sometimes, experiencing head-on what he has been afraid of for some time ended up being the exactly right strategy for overcoming his fear. Sometimes, however…

Looking around at the hundreds of dogs surrounding him, Akira thought that, perhaps, in order to combat his… distrust towards dogs in general, he might have chosen something less grand than the Yoyogi Wanwan Carnival. Like a dog café. Or the lady who walked her shiba inu around Yongen Jaya sometimes.

Anything, but this.

He took a deep breath, looking around. Dogs; dogs of all sizes and breeds, dogs in strollers, on leashes, wearing clothes and some even wearing _shoes_ – dogs everywhere. Walking obediently with their owners, barking at one another, some – precious few, thankfully – even snapping and growling as their caretakers tried to calm them down.

Yeah, no, alright. He was out of there.

Akira turned on his heel and started to walk, fast, when…

“…Kurusu-kun?”

The familiar voice made him spin around; and his eyes widened, meeting the equally surprised pair of russet-coloured ones. For a little moment, the two of them stared at each other in confusion; and then, Akechi Goro spoke again.

“I was not aware you enjoyed attending events such as these, Kurusu-kun.” he said. Akira felt himself smile lightly.

“Right back at you, Akechi.”

And indeed; somehow, though the detective didn’t look out of place here, he didn’t look exactly like… well, himself. Dressed in a turtleneck and jeans, with his hair in a ponytail, he looked anything like the prim and proper media darling. Akira felt his smile widen slightly; he certainly didn’t mind that look.

Akechi simply shrugged, looking at him indulgently.

“What can I say; I have always been a dog person, and yet, never being able to own one… you understand.” he smiled once more. “Unfortunately, my apartment complex forbids pets of any kind. How about you? Won’t Morgana be jealous when you come back home, smelling of dogs, of all things?”

… _ah_. Right. Now how on earth was he supposed to reply to something like _this_ without sounding lame. Akira cleared his throat and looked away.

“For me it’s more of an… exercise in self-growth.” he finally said, trying to sound casual. He could almost _feel_ Goro’s eyebrows going up all the way to his hairline at that. Finally, shaking his head, Akira resigned himself and murmured the rest of his explanation.

“I’m trying to… face my fear, so to say, and get over it. Going for a dog carnival felt like a good idea up until I finally got here.”

For an excruciating moment, all Goro did was stare at him; and then, with a snigger, he came a step closer.

“…you’re afraid of _dogs_..? Akira Kurusu is afraid of _dogs_ , of all things?”

“It’s not that I’m _afraid_.” Akira growled, frowning at the still grinning detective. “I… well, if you have to know, I had a rather unpleasant… encounter… with a dog when I was some seven years old. Two of my neighbours’ dogs attacked me and bit me, and… I just don’t really feel comfortable near them since then, alright? I don’t mind it much, I just… I prefer creatures that do not have the ability to crush your neck with their jaws alone when they’re annoyed. Like cats. Or fish. Or parrots.”

“ _Parrots_.”

Akira glared at Goro.

“It was an _example_.”

“Right, well.” Goro chuckled quietly, before leaning back against the tent he was standing near to. “It isn’t like I cannot understand this way of thinking. However… I would presume it is quite of importance for you to overcome this particular hang-up. As such, may I be of service?”

Akira frowned lightly, eyeing the detective with a somewhat veiled suspicion. He wasn’t sure what exactly Goro had meant by _helping him_ , but then…

“How?”

“Come here. We were needing extra pair of hands, anyway.”

And that was how, not entirely out of his own free will, Akira Kurusu has been grabbed and dragged into a grooming tent where – as he had learned – Goro had volunteered to help at for the day. It was for some organization that helped people to learn about how to care for their pets properly, and the nice lady who ran the tent explained it all to him – only Akira wasn’t really listening, because he was eyeing the long queue of progressively more uneasy dogs that waited for them to… to…

“…what am I supposed to do, exactly?” he growled quietly into Goro’s ear.

“Hold them.” Goro replied with a sunshine smile. “Like this… look. Oh, now, don’t be silly, and don’t worry, no dog will do anything to you. And I’ll be doing the presentation and explain the proceedings to the owner. Just help me a bit, alright?”

Akira did; mainly to wipe the superior smirk off Goro’s face as he gently guided his hands to show him how to properly hold the dog in question. The creature on the kind of raised table he has been set in was small and warm – about twice the size of Morgana – and Akira found he wasn’t exactly afraid it will turn around and bite him. He just felt… uneasy. As he usually would.

Beside him, Goro was explaining the more important bits about this particular breed’s behaviours, habits and care; and slowly, Akira found himself focusing less on making sure the dog didn’t bite him, and more on what the detective was saying. Goro had a nice voice, and a gift for sharing his knowledge in an interesting way; and the more Akira listened and the more dogs went through their little tent, the less tense and uncomfortable he became.

It certainly wasn’t as scary to hold a dog you knew a lot about; and what’s more, it felt… easy, to work with Goro like this; help him, shift his hands and calm the dogs that used to make him so nervous down as Goro demonstrated the proper way to brush their fur and gave pointers on washing them and feeding. Neither in Sae’s Palace, nor in Mementos were they ever in a situation like this; where it was Goro who took charge, who guided and explained things to Akira and helped him whenever he felt uneasy or scared. And though in the Metaverse, their teamwork was almost shockingly flawless – one of the reasons why Akira made the newest member of his group the permanent member to his vanguard ever since Goro joined them, despite not trusting him entirely – right here, right now, it was better and more pronounced in a completely different way.

Almost without meaning to, Akira had realized Goro was making him feel… safe. Their compatibility shone through here better than it ever had a chance to in Mementos. Goro knew when there came a dog that was the same breed as the one who attacked Akira all these years ago; he reacted immediately and without thinking. He spent a long time on this one; guiding Akira’s hands again, asking politely if they could pet the dog, aside from the presentation; explained the habits and temperament of that breed and by the end of it, as the dog jumped up and licked at Akira’s face, instead of getting startled, the raven laughed and pat the dog’s head happily, only to look away when he saw Goro’s grin.

By the time the person who was supposed to take the shift after Goro had come, the two of them were working with barely needing to exchange a word; and Akira, at first so apprehensive, was helping the detective with ease and gentle smile on his face. When they finished their work, gave back their aprons and washed their hands, Akira felt his smile widen, and he looked to the side at the detective walking beside him as they strolled through the barking, tail-wagging park.

“…you know a lot about dogs, don’t you?”

“Personal interest.” Goro shrugged, before looking over at him. “Well? Were we able to conquer your fear today, Leader?”

“Perhaps not all of it.” Akira smiled, humming to himself. “But a big part, yes. I… I didn’t even know there were so many things to be known about dogs. And I’m definitely less nervous around them. But it’ll take time before I’m comfortable.”

The raven smiled lightly and looked to the side.

“Thank you. I… wasn’t expecting to have so much help today.”

“Well, you’ve helped me, too.” Goro laughed, before his grin turned mischievous; and Akira realized that there was one more thing that didn’t quite fit the image he had of Akechi before their meeting here. His smile. This time… it was a genuine one.

“But, since I’ve been so gracious as to offer my services… I think you owe me a dog-shaped cotton candy they’re selling over there.”

“Dog shaped cotton candy.” Akira stared, before grinning mischievously as well. “Fine. We could also get popcorn.”

“Oh, good idea. I see they sell some at the—”

“No, I mean from the vendor by the Meijijingu entrance.”

“…ah? But that’s all the way…”

“And there’s a crepe vendor on the other side of the shrine, by Takenoko Street entrance…”

Akira’s smirk widened slightly as Goro stared at him, before narrowing his eyes in some kind of pleased suspicion.

“…are you trying to trick me into going on a date with you?”

“It’s not a trick if you know about it, now is it?” Akira hummed, and watched as Goro shook his head before faking a painful sigh.

“Ah… I suppose. If there’s a crepe in it for me.”

“Alright.” the raven murmured and looked to the side; _accidentally_ catching Goro’s hand in his and smiling when he felt the detective’s fingers wrap around his own hand in turn.

“Cotton candy first, then.”

**Author's Note:**

> Akira's fear of dogs is a random hc I have, and it's description is from my actual experience. Goro's love for dogs is also my hc.
> 
> If you like my stories, you can find me on twitter [@mikan_writings](https://twitter.com/mikan_writings) and/or tumblr at [mikan_writings](https://mikan-writings.tumblr.com/)!


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